从大众高等教育到普及高等教育

新信息技术的发展要求对普及高等教育的本质进行反思 ,并对其所需条件的认识进行更新 ,这涉及到高等教育制度结构和对待高等教育态度的深刻变革。精英形式的高等教育需进行重新定位。本文在比较的背景下主要分析了美国及欧洲社会的高等教育在走向普及形式的过程中面临危机的原因 ,认为美国特有的结构特征和文化特征赋予了其独特优势。而技术发展的不确定性及各国经济、社会结构的差异性决定了通过新技术扩大入学机会将采取不断实验的方式进行     

Goal Theory Is Not Dead—Not Yet, Anyway: A Reflection on the Special Issue

The author suggests how these papers converge in portraying the nature of motivation, learning, and achievement. That portrayal proceeds from a social—cognitive framework that stresses the centrality of goals in framing whether, when, and how students are likely to approach or avoid academic tasks. He points out, however, that approach and avoidance, although an important aspect of motivation, do not fully encompass a domain that is and has been considered the fitting purview of motivation theory and research. Especially in the realm of education, the quality of engagement that eventuates is of equal if not greater importance relative to choice and direction. However, a primary question raised in these comments relates to the nature of goals and how they operate in framing action, thought, and feelings. Some of the work reflected in the wider goal theory literature as well as in some of these papers, suggests that goals are closely linked to a varying role of self in determining the nature and direction of action, feelings, and thought. Some of the work seems to limit goals to a specific kind of objective under limited circumstances. Finally, questions are raised about whether or how the work presented would define the role of context in determining motivation. Clearly, although work reflected in these papers is truly impressive, it is impressive not just for conclusions reached but also for new questions prompted.     

I Have Seen the Future and It Is Not Here Yet …; or,On Being Ambitious for Audience Research

Audience research, after a promising period during which some crucial advances were made, seems to be in decline in several ways, yet its tasks remain as important as ever. This article, originally a presentation at the 2003 Versailles Conference on the Future of Audience Research, makes the case for expanding our vision of the field’s possibilities. To do this, it revisits some of the forgotten achievements of the Uses and Gratifications tradition, offers a critique of the dominant “Hall model” for conceiving media/audience relations, and outlines the key concept of an alternative approach: the concept of a “viewing strategy,” which has been at the heart of the 2003–2004 international project on the reception of The Lord of the Rings.     

Adult-child interaction in children’s learning from “Sesame Street”

This study examined whether children’s learning from “Sesame Street” could be improved by having adults ask the children questions and provide them with feedback while they watched the show. Subjects were 23 three- and four-year-old, white, middle-class children who were randomly assigned to one of two conditions. Children in both conditions watched three specially edited versions of “Sesame Street” with an adult. While they did so, children in the experimental condition were asked to name the letters and numbers shown on the programs. Results indicated that 3 days after watching the last program, children in the experimental condition were better able to name and identify the letters and numbers they had seen (p < .01). Three features of the experimental treatment that may have contributed to these results are discussed, as are the implications of the findings.     

Black boxes on wheels: research challenges and ethical problems in MEA-based robotics

Robotic systems consisting of a neuron culture grown on a multielectrode array (MEA) which is connected to a virtual or mechanical robot have been studied for approximately 15 years. It is hoped that these MEA-based robots will be able to address the problem that robots based on conventional computer technology are not very good at adapting to surprising or unusual situations, at least not when compared to biological organisms. It is also hoped that insights gained from MEA-based robotics can have applications within human enhancement and medicine. In this paper, I argue that researchers within this field risk overstating their results by not paying enough attention to fundamental challenges within the field. In particular, I investigate three problems: the coding problem, the embodiment problem and the training problem. I argue that none of these problems have been solved and that they are not likely to be solved within the field. After that, I discuss whether MEA-based robotics should be considered pop science. Finally, I investigate the ethical aspects of this research.     

Playing with others: Head Start children's peer play and relations with kindergarten school competence

Time-sampled observations of Head Start preschoolers’ (N = 264; 51.5% boys; 76% Mexican American; M = 53.11 and SD = 6.15 months of age) peer play in the classroom were gathered during fall and spring semesters. One year later, kindergarten teachers rated these children's school competence. Latent growth models indicated that, on average, children's peer play was moderately frequent and increased over time during preschool. Children with higher initial levels or with higher slopes of peer play in Head Start had higher levels of kindergarten school competence. Results suggest that Head Start children's engagement with peers may foster development of skills that help their transition into formal schooling. These findings highlight the importance of peer play, and suggest that peer play in Head Start classrooms contributes to children's adaptation to the demands of formal schooling.     

Lessons Learned from a Predominantly Latinx Autistic Population: Preliminary Effects of the PEERS Intervention on Neural and Perceived Educational Performance

Thirteen autistic teens, who were predominantly Latinx, completed the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS), a 16-week social skills intervention. Time-frequency decomposition was calculated using advanced electroencephalographic techniques to measure oscillatory brain activity during reward anticipation and processing before and after PEERS. Fourteen neurotypical teens participated but did not receive intervention. The perception of educational performance was also measured. The perception of educational performance did not differ between groups and did not change after participation in PEERS. Approach motivation increased after intervention in the autistic group. This suggests an enhancement of social motivation after learning social skills in a group composed of a majority of Latinx autistic teens.     

Notes on Classroom Practice and the Ownership and Use of Personal Computers Amongst Egyptian Science and Mathematics Teachers

This paper reports a study of the acquisition and use of personal computers by Egyptian science and mathematics teachers. Self-report data was collected from the same teachers on how they had changed their classroom activities and professional practice since their return to Egypt following a twelve-week in-service course in the United Kingdom. The data from this sample of teachers is compared with that from a second sample, who also attended the same in-service programme, but did not report the purchase of a personal computer. Analysis indicates that the Egyptian teachers with personal computers have tended to concentrate on improving the quality of current practice, through better preparation and student testing, rather than introducing major, paradigmatic, changes to their teaching.